Product, Price, Distribution, and Promotion
Shenetter C. Morris
Dr. Cynthia Davis
HSA 505
December 11, 2011
Product, Price, Distribution, and Promotion

Identify a specialty that fits for your geographic area and justify your selection. A specialty that’s fits the Alabama geographic area is women’s health. The top five areas of women’s health that are affecting the lives of women on a daily basis are: heart disease, breast cancer, stroke, autoimmune diseases, and osteoporosis. Based on research I will attempt to prove why women’s health was chosen as a specialty by providing statistical facts and benefits. Worldwide, 8.6 million women die from heart disease each year, accounting for a third of all deaths in women. Heart disease is the number one killer in the state of Alabama. Research shows that in the year 2007 a total of 11,926 people died of heart disease and of that number 6, 018 were females. On an average, nearly twenty-one females die from heart disease in Alabama each day. Alabama is one of five states to have the highest death rate from heart disease. Alabama has the second highest death rate from cardiovascular disease in the country ("Alabama state fact,”). Statistics for the Alabama area show that per 100,000 women a rate of 116.8 was white and a rate of 116.2 was black that reported breast cancer incidents. Based on 100,000 women rates of 24.1 experienced deaths by breast cancer, rates show that 21.5 of women that died by breast cancer were white and 33.1 of those women were black ("Breast cancer rates," 2010). The stroke death rate is 1.3 times the national average. Stroke is the number 3 killer in Alabama, a total of 2,747 people died of stroke in the year 2007 and of that number 1,592 were women. Currently there are only two certified primary stroke centers in Alabama. Only 17 percent of Alabamians are aware of all the correct symptoms of a stroke and the need to call 911 ("Alabama state fact,”). It has been reported that one in twelve women will have an autoimmune disease. Overall, autoimmune diseases are common, affecting more than 23.5 million Americans. They are a leading cause of death and disability. There are at least eighty autoimmune diseases ranging from rheumatoid arthritis to multiple sclerosis that are prevalent in an estimated 75 percent of women than they are in men ("Autoimmune disease fact," 2010). The majority of people living with autoimmune disorders are women, usually those who are of childbearing age. In fact, autoimmune diseases are among the leading causes of death and disability in girls and women 65 years of age and younger (McCoy, 2009). Osteoporosis threatens 44 million Americans, of which 68% are women, reports the National Osteoporosis Foundation. As women tend to age and with bone loss accelerating after menopause that causes a quick drop in estrogen over time increasing the risk of osteoporosis. Indicate what level of intensity would promote this transition effectively and support your answer. Implementing levels of low and high intensity might help with the specialization in women’s health. Low intensity levels would be geared towards women that can receive clinical treatment services that are appropriate and their needs can be met on an outpatient basis. This would also include women, despite their diagnosis and treatment needs, can function with a moderate level of care and supervision and women that normally comply with their prescribed treatment regimen. Women for whom low intensity health and medical services are appropriate are for women who require only routine medical care.
Low level intensity hospitals are also appropriate for women with developmental disabilities who do not have a diagnosed mental illness and serious emotional disturbance.
High level intensity treatment services are appropriate for those women with disabilities and have a history of psychiatric hospitalizations. Licensed women’s programs have agreements with physicians and hospitals to ensure that women in their care have access to routine and emergency medical services. Licensed women’s programs providing low intensity medical services have the capacity to implement special diets for brief periods of time when necessary to respond to short term illnesses and related treatments. All physician prescribed medications are administered by a Registered Nurse or Certified Medication Technician. Licensed women’s programs are responsible for maintaining records of appointments with doctors and other health care practitioners, all medical treatments provided and the use of all prescribed medications.
High intensity clinical treatment services are an essential element of programs serving women with serious and chronic mental illness and severe emotional disturbances. Individual service plans must integrate clinical treatment and behavioral intervention strategies and identify the roles played by the women and program staff to facilitate the women’s involvement in treatment services.
Create a promotional strategy that includes the internal communication and promotion to employees. Internal communication within an organization includes all forms of communication such as memos, guidelines, policies, and procedures. The exchanging of ideas and opinions and the development of personal relationships all play a role in internal communication. Internal communication can also involve all of the following: administrators, supervisors, clerical and support staff, volunteers, and even the Board of Directors. Good internal communication means that one is able to their job effectively, they are aware of all concerns within the company, feedback is provided, and there are clear expectations of what’s expected from each employee. Good communication promotes an atmosphere of collegiality, and makes the organization a pleasant place to work. It also promotes fairness and equity within the organization. When promoting good communication to the employees there are three main concerns that have to be addressed. The first involves the organizational climate and culture. The organization has to be a place where open communication is accepted and encouraged. The second concerns establishing clear definitions of what needs to be communicated, and by whom. The last issue is that of the systems that the organization creates to get its work done and to enable internal communication (Rabinowitz).
This means that the organizational culture has to embrace internal communication, and those individuals’ particularly key individuals, who might be the director and other administrators, or who might simply be the people that others respect and listen to have to feel comfortable with, and model communicating regularly and clearly with, anyone and everyone else in the organization. Ultimately, the organizational climate becomes the organizational culture. Creating a climate that fosters internal communication includes practice what you preach. This is probably the most important aspect of developing an atmosphere of openness. People have to be consistently treated as if they and their ideas and opinions matter (Rabinowitz).
Create a promotional strategy that includes the external communication and promotion to the community. External communication involves the exchange of information and messages between an organization and other organizations, groups, or individuals outside its formal structure. The goals of external communication are to facilitate cooperation with groups such as suppliers, investors, and stockholders, and to present a favorable image of an organization and its products or services to potential and actual customers and to society at large. A variety of channels may be used for external communication, including face-to-face meetings, print or broadcast media, and electronic communication technologies such as the Internet. External communication includes the fields of PR, media relations, advertising, and marketing management (Rabinowitz). Create a promotional strategy that includes the internal communication and promotion to potential and future patients. Ways of internal communication to promote to potential and future patients could be web advertising, pamphlets available in the office that advertise and promote the services that are offered. Patient surveys done inside the office is a possible form of internal communication that provides insight to the hospital. When promoting the information to potential and future patients it’s important to make sure that all concerns are addressed and that the information being relayed is concise. There could also be an informational kiosk setup that is able to assist the current and potential patients. In conclusion with the specialization geared towards women’s health it can help to bring about more awareness and education for the Alabama area. The top five causes that are listed are just the leading causes that contribute to women’s health. Also if the focus is on specializing in women’s health proves to be marketable and is a good thing, satellite locations could be open. The opening of the satellites offices will help to make sure the hospital is not overcrowded and that all patients are assisted. Also with establishing or going forward with the idea to promote women’s health it is essential that information is communicated between employers/employees, the community, and the consumers.

References

Alabama state fact sheet. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.heart.org/idc/groups/heart-public/@wcm/@global/documents/downloadable/ucm_307146.pd
Center for Disease Control and Prevention, (2010). Breast cancer rates by states. Retrieved from website: http://www.cdc.gov/cancer/breast/statistics/state.htm
McCoy, K. (2009, December 02). Women and autoimmune diseases. Retrieved from http://www.everydayhealth.com/autoimmune-disorders/understanding/women-and-autoimmune-diseases.aspx
Rabinowitz, P. (n.d.). Promoting internal communication. Retrieved from http://ctb.ku.edu/en/tablecontents/sub_section_main_1149.aspx
U.S Department of Women Health and Human Services, Office on Women’s Health. (2010). Autoimmune disease fact sheet. Retrieved from website: http://www.womenshealth.gov/publications/our-publications/fact-sheet/autoimmune-diseases.cfm